Business Plan: Flaming Eggplant
aka Evergreen's coop December 2007 Contents: 1.Executive Summary 2.Financial Plan 1.Advantages and Disadvantages 2.Estimated startup costs 3.Cash Flow Pro Forma 3.Human Relations Plan 3.1 Summary 3.2 Board of Advisors 3.3 Suppliers 3.4 Employees 3.5 Customers
Executive Summary Why: Many Evergreen students value social and environmental responsibility, and food sits at the junction of these issues. While some may see these “alternative” viewpoints as a nuisance to business-as-usual, we see an informed population being underserved. While Aramark does a good job providing food for large amounts of people, there is still a need for local, sustainable, ethical, quality, but fast food on campus which we plan to fill. Students have continuously identified this need, and The Flaming Eggplant Cafe is our answer. We are actively fixing this problem ourselves, taking that burden off the administration. We are embracing this as an opportunity to nourish people on campus and channel student energy into a productive enterprise. The Flaming Eggplant is working to create community through food, in addition to running a viable business. We are committed to meaningful personal interactions, student empowerment, and most of all yummy food. For Evergreen to “walk its walk” of sustainability, innovation, collaboration and social responsibility, it can start by feeling good about eating lunch! Mission and Purpose: Our mission is to nourish people with healthy ingredients, nurture local economy with our business to help sustain a unified community. We plan to do this by using seasonal recipes based on food that is locally available and organically grown to provide more enjoyable, nutritional, tasty, and ecologically sound food to The Evergreen State College. Where: Trailer on Red Square, prep kitchen in CAB 109. When: Monday – Friday, 8-10am, 11am – 2pm Who: Four kitchen staff on duty, plus student management What: Sandwiches, Sausage, French Fries, Soup, Salad, Rice and Beans, Teas, Coffee, Bottled Drinks, pastries, fresh fruit. How: The Flaming Eggplant will be open for lunch from 11am– 2pm. The Café will also be open for pastries and coffee from 8am- 10 am. The will be four employees on shift for operation: a hot cook, cold cook, cashier, and runner. (See shift schedule for details) There will be a prep kitchen in CAB 109 where additional food can be stored and preparation work can be done. The menu includes food to appeal to a variety of palettes and budgets; this will include meat, vegetarian and vegan options. Soup, salad, and rice and beans will be offered daily. Food will be ordered from the Organically Grown Company (OGC), Glory-Bee Foods and United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI), using as many organic and local ingredients as is economical. We intend to extend our hours and menu to tap the evening and weekend market. We have decided to keep the operation simple and manageable to start, and then expand when the time is right. Please read on for more details on how we intend to run this business! Financial Plan Our main financial objective is to break even as quickly as possible. Our long range financial objective is to be able to reinvest profits back into the cafe to expand the cafe’s effect on the community. This includes providing living wages and offering affordable, quality food on campus. Outlined below are a few main factors specific to our situation: Advantages: ·Startup capital does not have to be paid back ·We will not have to pay “rent” (but will pay for utilities and other services) ·Student positions may be eligible for work-study funds ·“Free” management through academic contracts ·Valuable advising and consultation from staff and faculty. Disadvantages: ·Students will apply political pressure ·Organic food can be expensive, but we want to make our prices affordable ·Transient student involvement is a challenge to continuity ·Student leadership requires stipends ·“Amateur” management requires annual training and in the future dedicated advising from professional staff.
Human Relations Plan Summary The Flaming Eggplant is a student run cafe on the campus of The Evergreen State College. As such, there are many unique opportunities as well as constraints involved in the way the business is operated. Students are developing the Flaming Eggplant. There is a demand on campus for local, organic, reasonably priced food, and the Flaming Eggplant was conceived to address that demand. As of November 2007, the café has received seed funding from a student body fee and is in the planning phase; completing health permits, submitting financial, business and operational plans for approval by the college administration, and specifying equipment lists for the bidding process. The Flaming Eggplant sees itself as a community-driven project, than a business. Student leaders have taken the time to clarify what the most vital and unique values of the Flaming Eggplant are: Transparency. As so many groups have a vested interest in the Flaming Eggplant's success, it is important that no dealings go under the radar of the community. The Eggplant is therefore challenged to maintain its integrity, and to be open to constructive criticism. Sustainability. The Flaming Eggplant, as a learning organization, should be constantly vigilant of the balance, happiness, and growth of its stakeholders. Stakeholders should be mindful of creating an important legacy at Evergreen, support its continuity and serve its values. Education. Some members of the community would like to see the Flaming Eggplant as a working model for learning about local food networks, business management and sustainability as part of an academic curriculum, much like Evergreen's organic farm. Localization. By strengthening it's ties to the local food network, The Flaming Eggplant is sending a message to the greater community. This message is that the Evergreen community wants to eat locally, and is interested in participating at a high level with the “buy local” movement.
Board of Advisors Philosophy Given the transient nature of the student population, we will strive to create a lasting backbone for the business. Students will be responsible for management and operations, but they will need help and guidance. The Board of Advisors will be a group of faculty, staff and administrators who will meet with the student leaders periodically to check in on the progress of the business and offer support and feedback. Some of these advisors may have more significant participation, such as a faculty who sponsors academic contracts relating to the business, staff with relevant experience, or administrators with important jurisdiction within the school. Within a year or less, we will have dedicated advisors who will have long-term involvement with the project. Interactions between Advisors and Students The Flaming Eggplant Café provides a unique and exciting opportunity for students to learn about a wide variety of subjects through experience. The role of the Advisors is to facilitate and guide this learning. The Advisors should not have to actually work in the business, but rather aid students in doing the work themselves. This may involve a fair amount of serious, detailed consultation for the more intimately involved, but the students should maintain control and a strong sense of ownership. The complete Board of Advisors will meet with the student leadership twice each quarter, perhaps in weeks two and eight of the academic quarter. These meetings should result in measurable goals and commitments, as well as a thorough analysis of the needs, challenges and successes of the project. Food will be served at these meetings to create a relaxed atmosphere. Students should solicit help when they need it, and Advisors should offer help when it seems necessary. This requires regular communication between the lead Advisors and students. Both students and Advisors should recognize the unique and challenging nature of the project, and remember that it is as much about learning and growth as serving good food. Suppliers Philosophy The most important difference between The Flaming Eggplant and a conventional food service is the source and quality of ingredients. We will strive to meet our goal of offering ethical, local, organic food at affordable prices. To achieve this balance we will strive to develop long-term relationships with local farms. Until these relationships are established, we will select ingredients individually on the basis of a “cost-ethics” analysis. Buying directly from local, organic farms is the preferred form of purchasing. Ideally, we will contract with farms to plant acreage, and share the risk of natural fluctuations in productivity and market value. Realistically, food will also be sourced from natural food distributors as well. In general, our purchasing model is that of the Olympia Food Co-op. In all of our dealings with farms and distributors, we will attempt to have clear, polite communication. We will work hard to pay our bills in a timely manner, and build trusting relationships. Demographics Dry Goods Distributors These companies sell and distribute bulk commodity natural foods such as oil, flour and spices. They have good prices, but are not as local or sustainable as the café seeks to be. The biggest such distributor is UNFI (United Natural Foods, Inc.), a Connecticut-based publicly traded company. Fresh Produce Distributors These companies deliver fresh vegetables and other perishable goods. There are two main companies that serve this niche locally: Charlie’s Produce of Seattle and Organically Grown Company of Portland. Direct-From-Farm Purchasing As transportation logistics and price competitiveness allow, we will buy as much food directly from local farms as possible. We will even consider revising the menu based on local availability of crops, if reliable supply exists and the recipe is tasty. Strategies Cost-Versus-Ethics Analysis. Some organic or local ingredients are not much more expensive (or even cheaper) than their conventional counterparts, but other ingredients may fetch a high premium for ethical production techniques. Until we can work directly with farms to balance these needs, we must decide what level of “ethical premium” is worth the cost. Meat and dairy are examples of ingredients that we are not willing to buy from factory farms even though the price premium is significant. However, we might buy non-organic wheat from Eastern Washington because it is local and affordable Clear Task Delegation. Inventory will be checked frequently (at least weekly, if not daily) to ensure enough supply to anticipate our needs and to avoid making “emergency purchases.” Inventory and purchasing tasks will follow a consistent pattern with clear documentation to ensure good communication and timely completion. Business Etiquette Training. Employees who represent us to the outside world will receive advice and feedback about appropriate, productive and polite communication. We will offer continuous training in interpersonal relations. Farm Outreach Coordinator. This person’s sole responsibility will be to build and maintain relationships with local farms.
Employees Philosophy In the first business plan, we envisioned ourselves as a worker-owned cooperative. Now that we are under the umbrella of the college, and have gained some insight into the challenges of running a high-maintenance student initiative at Evergreen, it appears to be more viable to have a group of students tasked with coordinating the organization. We would like to create a culture similar to that of a worker-owned cooperative. Employees should have a strong sense of ownership, and since managers will be receiving little to no compensation, a hierarchical dynamic can be avoided. Demographics There are three forms of “employment” for the Flaming Eggplant, and each form may appeal to different demographics. These are: Contracted "student managers" There will be a group of 2-3 students a year who will create learning contracts for an entire year based on running the business. Terms will overlap between managers so that mentoring may occur from one quarter to the next. The student demographic appropriate to this position is someone in their 2nd, 3rd, or 4th year at Evergreen, studying business, sustainability, local economy, or management. The student managers will have many attributes of the "organic core" described above. They will be characterized by a blend of high ambition, passion for the mission, organization, and motivational skills. They will be responsible for keeping the business alive. Students that are completing contracts will not receive stipends for the academic work that they complete. Hourly Workers These are students, who live on or off campus, that work at the cafe 19 hours or less per week for a paycheck. They are likely to work at the cafe because they support the mission and need a job. The ideal demographic for this group is part-time students who can contribute 15 to 19 hours a week of labor. We are looking for part-time labor because we want to employ students; by nature students’ first priority is their academics and we would not want to employ people for longer hours than they could handle. Additionally, we currently do not have the financial support necessary to pay for benefits of a full time worker. They should have strong customer service skills, experience in food service, ability to work quickly, and a focus on team building. Though many will come from the "organic core", diversity should be encouraged and cliques discouraged in the hiring process.
Paid Manager Once financial success allows, we may hire a full-time manager, to receive a salary and full benefits. This will be necessary only if student leadership is not adequate, successful or sustainable. The manager should be able to set the mood for a co-operative work environment. Advantages and Disadvantages All of the employees at the FE will be Evergreen students (except if we hire a manager). Below is a list of advantages and disadvantages associated with employees: Disadvantages: ·Student workers are only allowed to work up to 19 hours per week. If a state employee works more than this amount, they must be given full benefits, which are expensive. ·There will be a high turnover rate due to transient nature of students. ·Employee work shifts will be difficult to schedule around class times. ·In the beginning, the cafe will only be able to pay a minimum hourly wage. ·Many customers will be friends with employees, which presents potential situations for under-the-table "freebies" and misuse of resources. Advantages: ·The location on Red Square is convenient for student employees, especially if they live on campus. ·The cafe is a business "by the students, for the students", so there will be a sense of ownership and cooperative management. ·Employees who genuinely support the values and mission of the café are more productive and understand that the café may not be able to pay a high wage. ·Managers will be students earning credit for their learning experience, but not receiving a salary. This reduces overhead costs and promotes the collaborative and honest intentions of the managers. ·Coordinators of the cafe will be students that receive stipends to compensate their work and leadership in future planning and vision of the cafe. Strategies Annual Business Plan Update Incoming managers follow a business plan that was left by their predecessors. At the end of the year, the student managers will update the business plan to account for any new policies, strategic goals or changes in operational conditions. The business plans will be reviewed and approved by the Board of Advisors. During this review, Advisors and student managers will assess the years’ challenges and successes in following and executing the business plan. Policies and Procedures Handbook Student managers will reference this handbook to ascertain best practices, troubleshoot ambiguous situations and verify the official policy of the business. This may serve as legal evidence in cases of distinguishing liability. Employee Handbook Incoming Employees will be issued an employee handbook. This will include training material for potentially difficult situations, a clear list of values and ethics, and an employee contract. The Legacy Archive To pass vital information and memorable experiences along to future managers, there will be an archive for this purpose. New material will be compiled each quarter, and both managers and employees will be encouraged to read through the archives during training and orientation. Attracting Talented Employees The Flaming Eggplant will emphasize the importance of its values to prospective employees. Hiring will be taken seriously, and follow a predetermined format to promote transparency, fairness and nondiscrimination. Appropriate Distribution of Tasks To ensure that all student employees have meaningful employment experiences at the Flaming Eggplant, all tasks will be thoughtfully delegated. No single employee should be stuck with only cleaning duties, nor solely “upper level” tasks. This should promote a non-hierarchical sense of teamwork. Customers Philosophy This Café was created by students to meet a student need. Although faculty and staff represent an important market, the core customers will be students. Our marketing and customer relations are based on the idea that the differences between customers, employees and managers are not as important as our common interests. We will attempt to serve these common interests while respecting individual needs as much as possible. We are customer-funded, and since there are many different food preferences, we will try to juggle the needs of our constituents with the utmost care and transparency. Demographics Evergreen students, faculty, and staff are the customer base of the Café. Within this community, there are a few common memes that inform our marketing strategy. "Organic Core" students These are students who eat almost all organic and local food. They are well aligned with the values of the Flaming Eggplant. These students are often involved in studies related to sustainability, are leaders in environmental activism, and don’t watch TV. A typical "organic core" student does not own a car, only shops at the co-op, grows their own food, always has re-useable cups or dishware, and spends a good deal of time in the forest. A healthy proportion of Evergreen students fit at least some of this profile. The Flaming Eggplant will ensure the business of this group by being up to their ethical standards. "$tarving Students" These are students likely to patronize the Flaming Eggplant because they will get the most nourishing food for their money. Many students are on tight budgets, but would gladly pay $4 for a bowl of chili, if they knew it was full of wholesome foods that would keep them going for the rest of the day. Business from this group will be steady as long as the prices are low. The Flaming Eggplant will appeal to this group by consistently having offerings at $5 or below. There is definitely the potential for high volume of sales to this large demographic. "Foodies" These are people who demand taste and quality from the food they buy. They are likely to go off campus to find good food, but would rather not have to. Price is not so much an issue to this group. To please this niche, the cafe will uphold high standards, quality ingredients, and creative recipes. There are more "foodies" on campus than may be apparent initially. In the land of lattes, many are willing to pay a premium for special food. Though our focus will be more on the first two demographics, the food has to be good enough to meet the standards of “foodies.” Advantages and Disadvantages Advantages: ·The cafe has been well received and supported by the student body. Students voted for a fee to provide seed capital for the café. ·The issue of quality, ethical and healthy food has been unresolved for many years, and we fill that void. ·A large daytime population of students, faculty and staff will provide a consistent market for the lunch-time business. ·Many customers also value local, organic agriculture. Potential disadvantages: ·There is a concern that the cafe may only attract "organic core" students and become a cliquey customer base. In a former incarnation, a student-run café at Evergreen failed because it became all vegan, and alienated a large population of its customers. ·The hours of operation will be limited in the beginning and may not serve all markets, such as evening and weekend programs. ·Due to limited kitchen space, it may be difficult to produce food fast enough to meet the demand. This may result in long lines, and possibly even lost sales. ·Some students have a consumerist attitude; they feel entitled to perfect service, but are not willing to offer help or even constructive feedback. Strategies Addressing Different Customer Demographics: "Organic Core” There will be many local and organic items and information about each ingredient will be presented in a visible location. “$tarving Student” Low-cost items, such as $2 rice and beans, will serve the ultra-budget customers. All menu items will be priced competitively. “Foodie” There will be premium specials that are rotated periodically. We strive to make our food “from scratch” as much as possible, and source quality ingredients. Efficiency During High Volume Hours A portion of ingredients will be prepared before opening each day. A thorough production plan will be created to help economize the process. Employees will work with managers to refine the production line for maximum throughput (while maintaining high quality standards). Customer Satisfaction The Flaming Eggplant is in the unique position of being financed by the students. This sense of ownership may motivate high levels of customer feedback and involvement. The cafe will periodically hold customer feedback meetings for people to share ideas and suggestions. There will also be a suggestion box in an accessible location on the trailer. Customer Education and Visibility of Values The values, ingredient sources and history of the cafe will be displayed on the trailer. This will provide clear communication about the intentions, goals and challenges of the business. Transparency of Finances Financial information will be displayed on the outside of the Flaming Eggplant to educate customers about what the money is being used for and where profits are going. The nature of these documents is at the discretion of the student managers.
Business Plan: Flaming Eggplant
aka Evergreen's coop
December 2007
Contents:
1. Executive Summary
2. Financial Plan
1. Advantages and Disadvantages
2. Estimated startup costs
3. Cash Flow Pro Forma
3. Human Relations Plan
3.1 Summary
3.2 Board of Advisors
3.3 Suppliers
3.4 Employees
3.5 Customers
Executive Summary
Why:
Many Evergreen students value social and environmental responsibility, and food sits at the junction of these issues. While some may see these “alternative” viewpoints as a nuisance to business-as-usual, we see an informed population being underserved. While Aramark does a good job providing food for large amounts of people, there is still a need for local, sustainable, ethical, quality, but fast food on campus which we plan to fill.
Students have continuously identified this need, and The Flaming Eggplant Cafe is our answer. We are actively fixing this problem ourselves, taking that burden off the administration. We are embracing this as an opportunity to nourish people on campus and channel student energy into a productive enterprise.
The Flaming Eggplant is working to create community through food, in addition to running a viable business. We are committed to meaningful personal interactions, student empowerment, and most of all yummy food.
For Evergreen to “walk its walk” of sustainability, innovation, collaboration and social responsibility, it can start by feeling good about eating lunch!
Mission and Purpose:
Our mission is to nourish people with healthy ingredients, nurture local economy with our business to help sustain a unified community. We plan to do this by using seasonal recipes based on food that is locally available and organically grown to provide more enjoyable, nutritional, tasty, and ecologically sound food to The Evergreen State College.
Where: Trailer on Red Square, prep kitchen in CAB 109.
When: Monday – Friday, 8-10am, 11am – 2pm
Who: Four kitchen staff on duty, plus student management
What: Sandwiches, Sausage, French Fries, Soup, Salad, Rice and Beans, Teas, Coffee, Bottled Drinks, pastries, fresh fruit.
How:
The Flaming Eggplant will be open for lunch from 11am– 2pm. The Café will also be open for pastries and coffee from 8am- 10 am. The will be four employees on shift for operation: a hot cook, cold cook, cashier, and runner. (See shift schedule for details)
There will be a prep kitchen in CAB 109 where additional food can be stored and preparation work can be done. The menu includes food to appeal to a variety of palettes and budgets; this will include meat, vegetarian and vegan options. Soup, salad, and rice and beans will be offered daily. Food will be ordered from the Organically Grown Company (OGC), Glory-Bee Foods and United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI), using as many organic and local ingredients as is economical.
We intend to extend our hours and menu to tap the evening and weekend market. We have decided to keep the operation simple and manageable to start, and then expand when the time is right.
Please read on for more details on how we intend to run this business!
Financial Plan
Our main financial objective is to break even as quickly as possible. Our long range financial objective is to be able to reinvest profits back into the cafe to expand the cafe’s effect on the community. This includes providing living wages and offering affordable, quality food on campus.
Outlined below are a few main factors specific to our situation:
Advantages:
· Startup capital does not have to be paid back
· We will not have to pay “rent” (but will pay for utilities and other services)
· Student positions may be eligible for work-study funds
· “Free” management through academic contracts
· Valuable advising and consultation from staff and faculty.
Disadvantages:
· Students will apply political pressure
· Organic food can be expensive, but we want to make our prices affordable
· Transient student involvement is a challenge to continuity
· Student leadership requires stipends
· “Amateur” management requires annual training and in the future dedicated advising from professional staff.
Human Relations Plan
Summary
The Flaming Eggplant is a student run cafe on the campus of The Evergreen State College. As such, there are many unique opportunities as well as constraints involved in the way the business is operated. Students are developing the Flaming Eggplant. There is a demand on campus for local, organic, reasonably priced food, and the Flaming Eggplant was conceived to address that demand.
As of November 2007, the café has received seed funding from a student body fee and is in the planning phase; completing health permits, submitting financial, business and operational plans for approval by the college administration, and specifying equipment lists for the bidding process.
The Flaming Eggplant sees itself as a community-driven project, than a business. Student leaders have taken the time to clarify what the most vital and unique values of the Flaming Eggplant are:
Transparency. As so many groups have a vested interest in the Flaming Eggplant's success, it is important that no dealings go under the radar of the community. The Eggplant is therefore challenged to maintain its integrity, and to be open to constructive criticism.
Sustainability. The Flaming Eggplant, as a learning organization, should be constantly vigilant of the balance, happiness, and growth of its stakeholders. Stakeholders should be mindful of creating an important legacy at Evergreen, support its continuity and serve its values.
Education. Some members of the community would like to see the Flaming Eggplant as a working model for learning about local food networks, business management and sustainability as part of an academic curriculum, much like Evergreen's organic farm.
Localization. By strengthening it's ties to the local food network, The Flaming Eggplant is sending a message to the greater community. This message is that the Evergreen community wants to eat locally, and is interested in participating at a high level with the “buy local” movement.
Board of Advisors
Philosophy
Given the transient nature of the student population, we will strive to create a lasting backbone for the business. Students will be responsible for management and operations, but they will need help and guidance. The Board of Advisors will be a group of faculty, staff and administrators who will meet with the student leaders periodically to check in on the progress of the business and offer support and feedback.
Some of these advisors may have more significant participation, such as a faculty who sponsors academic contracts relating to the business, staff with relevant experience, or administrators with important jurisdiction within the school. Within a year or less, we will have dedicated advisors who will have long-term involvement with the project.
Interactions between Advisors and Students
The Flaming Eggplant Café provides a unique and exciting opportunity for students to learn about a wide variety of subjects through experience. The role of the Advisors is to facilitate and guide this learning. The Advisors should not have to actually work in the business, but rather aid students in doing the work themselves. This may involve a fair amount of serious, detailed consultation for the more intimately involved, but the students should maintain control and a strong sense of ownership.
The complete Board of Advisors will meet with the student leadership twice each quarter, perhaps in weeks two and eight of the academic quarter. These meetings should result in measurable goals and commitments, as well as a thorough analysis of the needs, challenges and successes of the project. Food will be served at these meetings to create a relaxed atmosphere.
Students should solicit help when they need it, and Advisors should offer help when it seems necessary. This requires regular communication between the lead Advisors and students.
Both students and Advisors should recognize the unique and challenging nature of the project, and remember that it is as much about learning and growth as serving good food.
Suppliers
Philosophy
The most important difference between The Flaming Eggplant and a conventional food service is the source and quality of ingredients. We will strive to meet our goal of offering ethical, local, organic food at affordable prices. To achieve this balance we will strive to develop long-term relationships with local farms. Until these relationships are established, we will select ingredients individually on the basis of a “cost-ethics” analysis.
Buying directly from local, organic farms is the preferred form of purchasing. Ideally, we will contract with farms to plant acreage, and share the risk of natural fluctuations in productivity and market value. Realistically, food will also be sourced from natural food distributors as well. In general, our purchasing model is that of the Olympia Food Co-op.
In all of our dealings with farms and distributors, we will attempt to have clear, polite communication. We will work hard to pay our bills in a timely manner, and build trusting relationships.
Demographics
Dry Goods Distributors
These companies sell and distribute bulk commodity natural foods such as oil, flour and spices. They have good prices, but are not as local or sustainable as the café seeks to be. The biggest such distributor is UNFI (United Natural Foods, Inc.), a Connecticut-based publicly traded company.
Fresh Produce Distributors
These companies deliver fresh vegetables and other perishable goods. There are two main companies that serve this niche locally: Charlie’s Produce of Seattle and Organically Grown Company of Portland.
Direct-From-Farm Purchasing
As transportation logistics and price competitiveness allow, we will buy as much food directly from local farms as possible. We will even consider revising the menu based on local availability of crops, if reliable supply exists and the recipe is tasty.
Strategies
Cost-Versus-Ethics Analysis.
Some organic or local ingredients are not much more expensive (or even cheaper) than their conventional counterparts, but other ingredients may fetch a high premium for ethical production techniques. Until we can work directly with farms to balance these needs, we must decide what level of “ethical premium” is worth the cost. Meat and dairy are examples of ingredients that we are not willing to buy from factory farms even though the price premium is significant. However, we might buy non-organic wheat from Eastern Washington because it is local and affordable
Clear Task Delegation.
Inventory will be checked frequently (at least weekly, if not daily) to ensure enough supply to anticipate our needs and to avoid making “emergency purchases.” Inventory and purchasing tasks will follow a consistent pattern with clear documentation to ensure good communication and timely completion.
Business Etiquette Training.
Employees who represent us to the outside world will receive advice and feedback about appropriate, productive and polite communication. We will offer continuous training in interpersonal relations.
Farm Outreach Coordinator.
This person’s sole responsibility will be to build and maintain relationships with local farms.
Employees
Philosophy
In the first business plan, we envisioned ourselves as a worker-owned cooperative. Now that we are under the umbrella of the college, and have gained some insight into the challenges of running a high-maintenance student initiative at Evergreen, it appears to be more viable to have a group of students tasked with coordinating the organization. We would like to create a culture similar to that of a worker-owned cooperative. Employees should have a strong sense of ownership, and since managers will be receiving little to no compensation, a hierarchical dynamic can be avoided.
Demographics
There are three forms of “employment” for the Flaming Eggplant, and each form may appeal to different demographics. These are:
Contracted "student managers"
There will be a group of 2-3 students a year who will create learning contracts for an entire year based on running the business. Terms will overlap between managers so that mentoring may occur from one quarter to the next. The student demographic appropriate to this position is someone in their 2nd, 3rd, or 4th year at Evergreen, studying business, sustainability, local economy, or management. The student managers will have many attributes of the "organic core" described above. They will be characterized by a blend of high ambition, passion for the mission, organization, and motivational skills. They will be responsible for keeping the business alive. Students that are completing contracts will not receive stipends for the academic work that they complete.
Hourly Workers
These are students, who live on or off campus, that work at the cafe 19 hours or less per week for a paycheck. They are likely to work at the cafe because they support the mission and need a job. The ideal demographic for this group is part-time students who can contribute 15 to 19 hours a week of labor. We are looking for part-time labor because we want to employ students; by nature students’ first priority is their academics and we would not want to employ people for longer hours than they could handle. Additionally, we currently do not have the financial support necessary to pay for benefits of a full time worker. They should have strong customer service skills, experience in food service, ability to work quickly, and a focus on team building. Though many will come from the "organic core", diversity should be encouraged and cliques discouraged in the hiring process.
Paid Manager
Once financial success allows, we may hire a full-time manager, to receive a salary and full benefits. This will be necessary only if student leadership is not adequate, successful or sustainable. The manager should be able to set the mood for a co-operative work environment.
Advantages and Disadvantages
All of the employees at the FE will be Evergreen students (except if we hire a manager). Below is a list of advantages and disadvantages associated with employees:
Disadvantages:
· Student workers are only allowed to work up to 19 hours per week. If a state employee works more than this amount, they must be given full benefits, which are expensive.
· There will be a high turnover rate due to transient nature of students.
· Employee work shifts will be difficult to schedule around class times.
· In the beginning, the cafe will only be able to pay a minimum hourly wage.
· Many customers will be friends with employees, which presents potential situations for under-the-table "freebies" and misuse of resources.
Advantages:
· The location on Red Square is convenient for student employees, especially if they live on campus.
· The cafe is a business "by the students, for the students", so there will be a sense of ownership and cooperative management.
· Employees who genuinely support the values and mission of the café are more productive and understand that the café may not be able to pay a high wage.
· Managers will be students earning credit for their learning experience, but not receiving a salary. This reduces overhead costs and promotes the collaborative and honest intentions of the managers.
· Coordinators of the cafe will be students that receive stipends to compensate their work and leadership in future planning and vision of the cafe.
Strategies
Annual Business Plan Update
Incoming managers follow a business plan that was left by their predecessors. At the end of the year, the student managers will update the business plan to account for any new policies, strategic goals or changes in operational conditions. The business plans will be reviewed and approved by the Board of Advisors. During this review, Advisors and student managers will assess the years’ challenges and successes in following and executing the business plan.
Policies and Procedures Handbook
Student managers will reference this handbook to ascertain best practices, troubleshoot ambiguous situations and verify the official policy of the business. This may serve as legal evidence in cases of distinguishing liability.
Employee Handbook
Incoming Employees will be issued an employee handbook. This will include training material for potentially difficult situations, a clear list of values and ethics, and an employee contract.
The Legacy Archive
To pass vital information and memorable experiences along to future managers, there will be an archive for this purpose. New material will be compiled each quarter, and both managers and employees will be encouraged to read through the archives during training and orientation.
Attracting Talented Employees
The Flaming Eggplant will emphasize the importance of its values to prospective employees. Hiring will be taken seriously, and follow a predetermined format to promote transparency, fairness and nondiscrimination.
Appropriate Distribution of Tasks
To ensure that all student employees have meaningful employment experiences at the Flaming Eggplant, all tasks will be thoughtfully delegated. No single employee should be stuck with only cleaning duties, nor solely “upper level” tasks. This should promote a non-hierarchical sense of teamwork.
Customers
Philosophy
This Café was created by students to meet a student need. Although faculty and staff represent an important market, the core customers will be students. Our marketing and customer relations are based on the idea that the differences between customers, employees and managers are not as important as our common interests. We will attempt to serve these common interests while respecting individual needs as much as possible.
We are customer-funded, and since there are many different food preferences, we will try to juggle the needs of our constituents with the utmost care and transparency.
Demographics
Evergreen students, faculty, and staff are the customer base of the Café. Within this community, there are a few common memes that inform our marketing strategy.
"Organic Core" students
These are students who eat almost all organic and local food. They are well aligned with the values of the Flaming Eggplant. These students are often involved in studies related to sustainability, are leaders in environmental activism, and don’t watch TV. A typical "organic core" student does not own a car, only shops at the co-op, grows their own food, always has re-useable cups or dishware, and spends a good deal of time in the forest. A healthy proportion of Evergreen students fit at least some of this profile. The Flaming Eggplant will ensure the business of this group by being up to their ethical standards.
"$tarving Students"
These are students likely to patronize the Flaming Eggplant because they will get the most nourishing food for their money. Many students are on tight budgets, but would gladly pay $4 for a bowl of chili, if they knew it was full of wholesome foods that would keep them going for the rest of the day. Business from this group will be steady as long as the prices are low. The Flaming Eggplant will appeal to this group by consistently having offerings at $5 or below. There is definitely the potential for high volume of sales to this large demographic.
"Foodies"
These are people who demand taste and quality from the food they buy. They are likely to go off campus to find good food, but would rather not have to. Price is not so much an issue to this group. To please this niche, the cafe will uphold high standards, quality ingredients, and creative recipes. There are more "foodies" on campus than may be apparent initially. In the land of lattes, many are willing to pay a premium for special food. Though our focus will be more on the first two demographics, the food has to be good enough to meet the standards of “foodies.”
Advantages and Disadvantages
Advantages:
· The cafe has been well received and supported by the student body. Students voted for a fee to provide seed capital for the café.
· The issue of quality, ethical and healthy food has been unresolved for many years, and we fill that void.
· A large daytime population of students, faculty and staff will provide a consistent market for the lunch-time business.
· Many customers also value local, organic agriculture.
Potential disadvantages:
· There is a concern that the cafe may only attract "organic core" students and become a cliquey customer base. In a former incarnation, a student-run café at Evergreen failed because it became all vegan, and alienated a large population of its customers.
· The hours of operation will be limited in the beginning and may not serve all markets, such as evening and weekend programs.
· Due to limited kitchen space, it may be difficult to produce food fast enough to meet the demand. This may result in long lines, and possibly even lost sales.
· Some students have a consumerist attitude; they feel entitled to perfect service, but are not willing to offer help or even constructive feedback.
Strategies
Addressing Different Customer Demographics:
"Organic Core”
There will be many local and organic items and information about each ingredient will be presented in a visible location.
“$tarving Student”
Low-cost items, such as $2 rice and beans, will serve the ultra-budget customers. All menu items will be priced competitively.
“Foodie”
There will be premium specials that are rotated periodically. We strive to make our food “from scratch” as much as possible, and source quality ingredients.
Efficiency During High Volume Hours
A portion of ingredients will be prepared before opening each day. A thorough production plan will be created to help economize the process. Employees will work with managers to refine the production line for maximum throughput (while maintaining high quality standards).
Customer Satisfaction
The Flaming Eggplant is in the unique position of being financed by the students. This sense of ownership may motivate high levels of customer feedback and involvement. The cafe will periodically hold customer feedback meetings for people to share ideas and suggestions. There will also be a suggestion box in an accessible location on the trailer.
Customer Education and Visibility of Values
The values, ingredient sources and history of the cafe will be displayed on the trailer. This will provide clear communication about the intentions, goals and challenges of the business.
Transparency of Finances
Financial information will be displayed on the outside of the Flaming Eggplant to educate customers about what the money is being used for and where profits are going. The nature of these documents is at the discretion of the student managers.